Madre: Perilous Journeys with a Spanish Noun

Nonfiction, History, Americas, Mexico, Reference & Language, Language Arts, Linguistics, Social & Cultural Studies, Social Science, Cultural Studies, Ethnic Studies
Cover of the book Madre: Perilous Journeys with a Spanish Noun by Liza Bakewell, W. W. Norton & Company
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Author: Liza Bakewell ISBN: 9780393080698
Publisher: W. W. Norton & Company Publication: November 15, 2010
Imprint: W. W. Norton & Company Language: English
Author: Liza Bakewell
ISBN: 9780393080698
Publisher: W. W. Norton & Company
Publication: November 15, 2010
Imprint: W. W. Norton & Company
Language: English

Why is the word madre, "mother," so complicated in Spanish—especially in Mexico?

Leaping off the page with energy, insight, and attitude, Liza Bakewell's exploration of language is anything but "just semantics." Why does me vale madre mean worthless, while !qué padre! means fabulous, she asks? And why do one hundred madres disappear when one padre enters the room, converting the group from madres to padres? Thus begins a journey through Mexican culture in all its color: weddings, dinner parties, an artist's studio, heart-stopping taxi rides, angry journalists, corrupt politicians, Blessed Virgins, and mothers both sacred and profane.

Along the way, a reader discovers not only an invaluable lexicon of Mexican slang (to be used with caution or not at all) but also thought-provoking reflections on the evolution of language; its winding path through culture, religion, and politics; and, not least, what it means—and what it threatens—to be a creative female, a madre.

View on Amazon View on AbeBooks View on Kobo View on B.Depository View on eBay View on Walmart

Why is the word madre, "mother," so complicated in Spanish—especially in Mexico?

Leaping off the page with energy, insight, and attitude, Liza Bakewell's exploration of language is anything but "just semantics." Why does me vale madre mean worthless, while !qué padre! means fabulous, she asks? And why do one hundred madres disappear when one padre enters the room, converting the group from madres to padres? Thus begins a journey through Mexican culture in all its color: weddings, dinner parties, an artist's studio, heart-stopping taxi rides, angry journalists, corrupt politicians, Blessed Virgins, and mothers both sacred and profane.

Along the way, a reader discovers not only an invaluable lexicon of Mexican slang (to be used with caution or not at all) but also thought-provoking reflections on the evolution of language; its winding path through culture, religion, and politics; and, not least, what it means—and what it threatens—to be a creative female, a madre.

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